Elite League
Ipswich Speedway: Witches move up to fourth in League table.
By Admin
May 20, 2008, 00:06

The Evening Star Ipswich Witches gained their second away victory in three days in the Elite League this evening when defeating the Wolverhampton Wolves 48-43 at Monmore Green Stadium.

Ipswich tracked Eastbourne’s Great Britain International rider, Edward Kennett as a guest at number 1 in place of the injured Chris Louis. Wolverhampton fielded their normal 1 to 7 line-up hoping for a repeat of their victory over the Witches in the Knockout Cup six weeks ago.
 
Freddie Lindgren won the toss for the home side and opted for gates 1 and 3 in the opening race and this proved fruitful for his partner Ales Dryml who made an excellent start from the inside and held on to defeat the Witches guest Edward Kennett. With Lindgren himself finishing third the Wolves took a 4-2 heat advantage. Chris Schraam had considerable mechanical problems in the pits and only just made it to the start in time for the reserves race. His machinery failed again as soon as the tapes rose and he was unable to continue, however his Polish team mate Piotr Swiderski took the chequered flag for a shared heat. Nicolai Klindt and Neils Kristian Iversen were soon away and gone in heat 3 and the Witches pairing of Tobi Kroner and Steve Johnston were a long way back. The fourth race was stopped when Piotr Swiderski took a heavy fall on the back straight when he clipped David Howe’s back wheel. The Ipswich reserve took a little time to rise to his feet but looked to have recovered without injury. In the rerun David Howe was able to hold off Jarek Hampel so that the Wolves gained another 4-2 to lead 16-8.

Heat 5 saw a dramatic change in the fortunes of the two teams. Nicolai Klindt fell on the first turn and was excluded by referee Dan Holt. In the rerun Robert Miskowiak rode Neils Kristian Iversen very hard in the first corner and Wolves’ Danish star then drove very strongly under Robert Miskowiak at the start of lap two and the Ipswich man ended up in the safety fence. The referee excluded Iversen who was very unhappy with the decision. The race was therefore awarded as a 5-0 to the away side. The Wolves’ lead was then reduced to a single point after an Ipswich 4-2 in heat 6. Jarek Hampel just held off the fast finishing Freddie Lindgren with Piotr Swiderski doing well to remain with his machinery for third after going very wide on the third bend of lap 1. David Howe then scored his second win of the evening but Steve Johnston and Tobi Kroner kept Christian Hefenbrock at the back for a 3-3. The Witches took the lead in the match for the first time in heat 8 after Robert Miskowiak took Ales Dryml very wide on the opening bend allowing Chris Schraam to come through into second place. Ipswich therefore led 25-22 after eight heats.

A second Witches 5-1 on the trot in heat 9 increased their lead with Jarek Hampel making a superb start and Piotr Swiderski getting past Neils Kristian Iversen on the third lap. The next race was a very dramatic event. The Witches pairing of Johnston and Kroner both made good starts but Freddie Lindgren roared into the lead down the back straight and then Ales Dryml tried to take advantage of Steve Johnston drifting wide by coming through on the inside. Dryml then moved slightly out coming out of the fourth bend and crashed into Johnston who was knocked sideways through the air. Tobi Kroner at the back rode over Dryml’s fallen machine and was catapulted through the air. Amazingly all three riders walked away from the incident but after lengthy consideration the referee excluded Ales Dryml. In the rerun Freddie Lindgren was far too strong for the presumably shaken Ipswich riders. Heat 11 saw the Witches fourth maximum heat advantage of the evening when with the Ipswich pair of Robert Miskowiak and Edward Kennett already in front, David Howe lost a chain and retired from the race. With the Witches now eleven points in front the Wolves Team Manager Peter Adams took the dramatic step of sending out captain Freddie Lindgren as a tactical substitute off a fifteen metre handicap. It was Piotr Swiderski however who came home first holding off the charging Wolves pair of Lindgren and Neils Kristian Iversen. The 5-3 heat advantage to the home side meant that the Witches led 41-32 with three heats remaining.

Freddie Lindgren was by now in top form and he duly raced away with heat 13 but David Howe was unable to find a way past Jarek Hampel so the Wolves were only able to reduce the Witches lead by two points. This meant Ipswich could wrap up victory in heat 14. Piotr Swiderski replaced Steve Johnston who was still feeling the effects of his earlier timble. Despite being outgated by Christian Hefenbrock, Swiderski swooped around the German for a comfortable win with Chris Schraam third and the 4-2 meant that the away side were in an unassailable position. In the final race Freddie Lindgren and Neils Kristian Iversen scored a comfortable 5-1 victory over Edward Kennett and Robert Miskowiak to leaves the Witches victorious by five points.

For the Witches Piotr Swiderski led the way with twelve plus a bonus point whilst Jarek Hampel scored 10.

Freddie Lindgren notched 16 for the Wolves supported by David Howe with 7.

The win lifted the Witches above Eastbourne and into fourth place in the Elite League table and Ipswich Team Manager Pete Simmons was delighted with the victory and said “we would have been happy with one  win out of this week’s three away matches but to get two is immense. This is our fifth win on the bounce and we are looking forward to our next fixture at Poole on Wednesday”.

Wolverhampton Wolves:
Freddie Lindgren 16, Ales Dryml 4, Neils Kristian Iversen 6+2, Nicolai Klindt 3, David Howe 7, Christian Hefenbrock 5, Kenneth Hansen 2+1.

Ipswich Witches:
Edward Kennett 8+1, Robert Miskowiak 8+1, Tobi Kroner 3+2, Steve Johnston 4, Jarek Hampel 10, Piotr Swiderski 12+1, Chris Schraam 3+1.